


The Beginning Of The End

by bluexdays



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Gore, Dark Comedy, Dark Magic, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Gore, Heavy Angst, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Romance, Self-Harm, Seven Deadly Sins, Shameless Smut, Smut, Suicide Attempt, basically loona the resident evil, themes and refs to dante's inferno
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:35:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24099724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluexdays/pseuds/bluexdays
Summary: Jung Jinsol doesn't have much to live for, or maybe she does.or: a seven deadly sins/dante's inferno inspired fic where Jinsol must navigate through every single sin in hopes of finding her now long lost lover Ha Sooyoung and hopefully... make it back alive.
Relationships: Ha Sooyoung | Yves/Jung Jinsol | Jinsoul
Comments: 4
Kudos: 46





	The Beginning Of The End

**Author's Note:**

> hi :)
> 
> I'm like writing so many things at once but that is okay because I am on summer break. very different from what I usually do but I've been watching a lot of resident evil gameplay recently and I got the inspiration to write this. I also loveeee the horror/psychological thriller genre so I can't wait to write more for this, and also improve my writing along the way.
> 
> I didn't proofread everything in this chapter so sorry if you see any errors but other than that enjoy :)
> 
> DISCLAIMER: please PLEASE be aware of the tags for this story. everything is completely fictional and I'm using my own knowledge and research to interpret this how I see fit. I've also thrown in some Loona lore maybe you guys might spot that :)
> 
> twitter @jiu_soulieee

Almost always everything goes wrong for Jinsol.

She managed to save her grades last minute by finding a website where she could buy answers from, she’s had one too many near death experiences that she can count on her hand and most prominent of all somehow saving her rocky relationship with her father. They had an argument, the worse Jinsol has ever had with him where she’s the one raising her voice this time after years and years of never speaking up to him. All the tension and frustration built up for this very moment and one could say it was fate how it happened a few months ago. Except, she didn’t expect everything else after to get much worse.

She failed her licensing exam, she failed to attend her sister’s first volleyball game, she failed to keep herself strong from falling back into old habits. It was as if the times she’s snuck out of the house and skipped classes during high school came back to bite her in no other form than karma. Jinsol can agree that she deserves some of the bad luck and maybe even most of it from her ex… her first real relationship and high school love… She didn’t want it to end like how it did.

They’ve already broken up. They’re done. And Jinsol couldn’t even be mad because _she_ was the one to break up with Sooyoung.

Why had she done it if she loves her so much? What’s the point of going through this god awful heartbreak? Doesn’t she know there’s plenty of more people in the world?

Jinsol does know that and has tried with multiple people in the past after their breakup, but it was never the same. Each time she felt like something was missing in every single one of them, the ‘spark’ that she desperately sought after still somewhere in the world. She feels bad whenever a girl confesses their love or adoration because Jinsol knows she won’t be able to return it, and no one should be in a one sided relationship either. That’s also why after her last failed attempt at a relationship she’d sworn to a life of loneliness no matter how badly she wanted someone and instead keeping, and failing, to only have her friends. It wouldn’t be so bad to remain single for a little while more, right?

Right?...

 _Wrong. So, so wrong_.

Jinsol groans out shakily, breathing having grown ragged already as she leans heavily against her bathroom wall. It’s a quiet night in the city, probably somewhere around after midnight, as the only other sounds is the packed traffic outside and people having sex in the room across from hers. It’s really only faint since her hearing has gone terribly bad, almost like she’s underwater with how distorted a car honk sounds. Her apartment remains eerily silent asides her breathing as Jinsol blinks slowly from her eyes getting heavier and glancing down at the scene occurring on her lap.

She’s got her arm resting comfortably against her leg from where she’s sitting on the floor and despite how peaceful she feels, everything is clearly wrong right now. There’s a few small cuts on her arm, some new and some old, but the most prominent one being a cut stretching horizontally and turning her skin into a hideous red – purple color. The cut is wider than any other one she’s done before and Jinsol can see (or maybe she’s hallucinating?) the flesh under her skin before she’s tilting her head to other side. Her movements are lazy and sluggish as more of her blood seeps into her sweats and she’s now blearily staring across at her toilet where the knife she used sits on the floor.

There’s only one way she can end her misery so seamlessly, so perfectly now without any disturbances. Jinsol is already starting to feel sleepy from the blood loss as her mouth becomes unbelievably dry and cold sweat forming along her skin. A few trickles of sweat climb down her temple and settling under her chin that she doesn’t even bother to wipe away. Strands of her black hair stick to her forehead and it would have Jinsol feeling gross some other time, yet it doesn’t now as she barely keeps consciousness. Her limbs feel heavy like they’re being weighed down by some unknown force and keeping her immobile with no means of aid. She’s practically numb to the pain at this point, only a dull ache that she knows that’s on her arm and most of all just feeling tired.

Her eyes are finally closing now as she exhales one last time and losing herself to the exhaustion.

“You shouldn’t go so soon, Jinsol.”

Somehow a voice is able to pierce through the haze and grab her attention as her brows twitch together for a second. She wants to open her eyes at the source, but she can’t, the fatigue overcoming everything else from the sense of comfort.

“Jinsol…” There’s the soft murmur of a voice again before she feels something tilt her chin up some.

“Fight it.”

It’s mostly curiosity that helps her slowly open her eyes, also a sudden surge of adrenaline as she groans hoarsely that it irritably scratches her throat. The bright, luminescent light of her bathroom first greets her until she notices that it’s not only from the light. A person wearing pure white clothes, the purest white she’s ever seen to the point that it’s almost blinding her until the stranger kneels down. She’s greeted with another feminine face soft, plush lips coming into view as Jinsol trails her eyes up higher shakily. Although her vision is still very much blurry, she can make out a few moles on what looks like pillowy, velvet skin and not a single blemish spotted. There’s a mole on her nose, another above her upper lip and the last one at the corner of her mouth and Jinsol’s pretty sure there’s more but her eyes are closing again.

“Don’t.”

She almost forgets about the fingers still under her chin that’s also keeping her head from lolling around.

“Tired…” It took all of her will power for force it out.

“I know, Jinsol, but I need you to look at me.”

“N… No.”

“Now is not the time to be stubborn,” She’s able to detect a slight hint of desperation in her calm voice. “Trust me on this, Jinsol.”

What more can she lose? She’s going to die anyways.

So, Jinsol listens to the stranger, body continuously trembling from the effort of lifting her head even with help given. Her hand twitches from sharp jab of pain in her injured arm, wincing slightly and almost giving up from the agony. She pulls through and opens her eyes nonetheless as the light in the bathroom becomes bearable to handle despite how bright it is. She’s prepared for the worse, a knife to the chest, a bullet to the head, or maybe even worse a kidnapping and be tortured endlessly for the rest of her life. However, she wasn’t expecting to see such an angelic face with a small genuine smile and kind eyes welcoming her.

“Good,” The woman lets go of her chin and Jinsol’s almost shocked from being able to hold herself up.

“I can help you properly now.”

“What are you…”

The rest of Jinsol’s sentence is gone at feeling a firm pressure on where the large cut is. The pain is unlike any other times she’s done before or even earlier today when she felt the first sting, this one is absolutely _excruciating_. Jinsol jerks forward as some more of her blood spills out into whatever is being held there to stop the bleeding(?), a gravelly cry echoing through the silence of her bathroom. Her other hand grips onto her pants, gritting her teeth together in an effort to ignore the pain as it makes her dizzy. She collapses back against the wall once it subsides to a dull throb as she’s breathing harshly in short whimpering, pants.

“W-What the fuck!”

Her voice sounds new, still raspy from unuse before she’s coughing out the itch.

“What…” Jinsol blinks a few times now realizing her eyesight has become much better as well and she no longer feels like she’s sinking into the ground. “What… Who are you? What did you do to me?”

There’s plenty more questions Jinsol wants to ask but being at the mercy of this stranger, she’s sure she wouldn’t get many answers.

“If I told you, would you believe me.”

“I… I d-don’t know, maybe?” Jinsol answers hesitantly while the stranger only smiles again.

“Your skepticism still never appears much,” The pressure on her arm is gone now and she looks down to see the woman pulling her hands away, eyes widening at the sight.

The cut is healed.

“I guess you can say… I am an angel, Jinsol.”

A part of her feels sick because she _does_ believe her.

“And your time hasn’t come just yet either,” She continues quietly, her voice a lullaby and feeling the faint vibrations in her chest.

“How are you real?” Jinsol breathes out while observing her, letting her eyes rake over the long flowy dress she has on before holding her gaze once more. “Am I already dead?”

“You’re still breathing, aren’t you?”

“I mean- yeah, I guess so, but wouldn’t that be the same anyways?”

“In time, you will learn the truth.”

“What are you…”

She loses the rest of her words and ends up going silent. There’s a lot going on that Jinsol has to process like that fact there is an alleged angel in her apartment and how she’s somehow been pulled back from _another_ near death experience and that something about knowing the truth? Honestly, Jinsol wishes she could take a cat nap like she always does. She looks back down at her arm seeing that the cut has healed up to a nasty, dark pink scar that’ll serve a reminder of this experience. She lifts a trembling hand and traces out the scar, flinching slightly when she feels another wave of pain and quickly retracts.

This feels surreal.

“I know you have a lot of questions. I can see it in you,” The woman continues while grabbing her attention and seeing her gaze full of concern. “But trust that you will be safe with me.”

“How did you even find me?”

“I’m a guardian angel. In a way.”

“What do you-”

“You’ll learn the truth, Jinsol.”

She gently cuts her off and Jinsol clenches her jaw for letting her. She doesn’t want to believe what’s happening right now, things were just so peaceful when she was bleeding out and staring dead at her toilet. No, she just _had_ to be saved, she didn’t want any saving anyways since this is the point of her suicide. She no longer has a reason to live, not for anyone and especially not for herself since she doesn’t even deserve it. Jinsol watches as the woman holds out both of her hands, not moving an inch until she urges her with a friendly nod. She doesn’t know why she listens to the stranger again when they could very well be a murderer and a liar for all she cares. Jinsol places her much larger hands onto hers, almost melting at the soft warmth that envelopes her and slows down her heartbeat.

“My name…” She starts with a hint of elegance to her words. “Is Mina and I’ve been sent here on your lover’s account.”

 _Lover_.

“You…Y-You mean…” No, it couldn’t be, Jinsol hasn’t said that name in years.

“ _Sooyoung_?”

Mina nods with a small smile, the same one that greeted her when she first appeared. “My God has allowed me to find you two.”

“What do you mean find.”

“Sooyoung…” Mina hesitantly tries to find the right words as Jinsol’s grip on her hands tighten. “Is no longer on Earth, unfortunately.”

“ _What_.”

“I’m sorry to relay the news like this.”

“Where is she?!” Jinsol dares to raise her voice while Mina sighs softly.

“That’s why I had to find you, Jinsol,” She looks up some while meeting her eyes. “You need to find her.”

“Are you… are you saying she’s _d-dead_.”

“No, absolutely not, she’s stuck in some sort of… limbo.” Mina finishes quietly, almost whispering her words before shaking her head. “Look, there is hope for you and Sooyoung to be together again, but the choice yours.”

There’s a tug and Jinsol doesn’t realize Mina is trying to get her back on her feet. It feels like ages the last time she’s done so even though it’s only been a little more than five minutes tops. Jinsol stumbles forward a bit and trying to get the strength back in her legs as she gingerly puts some of her weight there. Mina holds her the entire time, patiently guiding and catching her every time she swayed a little to the side. In the end, Jinsol feels the sweat travel down her cold back and the way the floor feels icy, prickling at the skin of her feet. Some of her black hair is still sticking to her temple and forehead now before looking behind Mina grimacing at the sickly sight of her body. Through the reflection she’s unnaturally pale, contrasting heavily against the black clothes she wears now and the gold necklace resting against her collarbones.

Jinsol is scared. Nothing of what seems to be happening makes sense as she’s trying to believe the situation from how serious and persistent Mina is while gazing up at her. She feels uneasy, cornered, the weight of her decisions heavy in her hands as Mina squeezes them encouragingly.

“You can choose to save her and live a life with her, or…” There’s that patient smile on her face, but Jinsol notices the pity in her tone. “You peacefully end your life and never meet her again.”

The choice really is hers.

“I…”

Jinsol knows what she has to do, her gut screaming at her to find Sooyoung and to be with her after all these years. Perhaps it’s pathetic the way she is still hung up over an ex, entirely miserable with her life and wanting nothing more than to die. She’s the one that broke up with Sooyoung after all, does she even deserve to be with her? Yet, the way Mina spoke about her intentions and the mention of a lover that Jinsol can only think about, she knows this is a reality. There’s no one else in the world who would seek out to her other than Sooyoung, and only for that reason, she’ll try.

“Alright…” Jinsol nods her head with a sigh, seeing Mina perk up. “I’ll do it, I’ll find Sooyoung.”

“Good,” She smiles before letting go one of Jinsol’s hand and tucking some of her hair back with a fond smile.

“I will be your guide, Jinsol.”

She… She begins to feel odd.

Jinsol grows weak in the knees, her legs almost buckling and catching herself in time while Mina holds her tightly now by her hips. She gags at a sudden wave of nausea, turning her head away and dry heaving out nothing before she coughs harshly. Her movements are frantic as she backs away from Mina completely and feeling her skin crawl, stomach tighten in a familiar way that won’t end so pleasantly. Tripping over her feet, Jinsol hits her back hard against her bathroom wall and knocking the wind out of her and only making her symptoms worst. Her eyes widen and a hand flies up to her mouth as she gags again, glancing over at Mina to see her worriedly watching her and still keeping her distance. Jinsol wants to scream at her for just standing there and being useless but instead of words coming up, the disgusting taste of bile floods her tongue.

She clamps her hand tighter around her mouth and only causing herself to choke before she’s loosening her grip. The hot, fluid of vomit taints her hand and her shirt and Jinsol can’t see through the tears welling up in her eyes as she’s also leaning against the wall heavily. Her nails scratch against her face and Jinsol has to pull her hand away as she throws up onto the bathroom floor before she’s weakly calling out to Mina. She sounds like she’s drowning under water from the gurgles leaving her. Jinsol’s able to keep herself somewhat stable even from the tremors in her legs never ceasing and blinking a few of the tears away. However, at catching a glimpse of her hand for only a fraction of second her blood goes cold. What she had thrown up was an unnatural amount of dark, murky blood that is now covering the floor and upon closer inspection a good portion of her hand as well. Jinsol couldn’t even think as to what the cause for this substance could be being retched onto the floor and backing away immediately from the sight.

She loses her footing once again and with a hoarse yelp, she falls onto the ground and no longer being able to stand. The dizziness intensifies and Jinsol manages to prop herself onto her elbow, but her stomach uncomfortably churns again and she’s dispelling more of the contents all the while Mina is still watching. Why isn’t she helping? Why has she not called an ambulance? Why is she just watching her _die_? Jinsol continues to vomit onto the floor, her throat burning from the bile stinging her throat and squeezing her eyes at the pain. It’s almost like there’s no end to it, weakly holding herself up as her vision swam and she’s slowly losing consciousness. A mixture of saliva and blood covers her chin and some more on her shirt, strands of it falling down to the floor like she’s some hungry animal after taking its first bite.

“The pain is only temporary, Jinsol.”

There’s that voice again, the one she first heard from the very beginning yet Jinsol is too far gone now as she lays onto her side exhausted to the bone. She rolls onto her back ever so slowly, staring up at the ceiling of her bathroom as the white lights start to flicker before she’s surrounded by complete darkness.

“I’ll be waiting.”

//

It’s warm this time around, almost like she’s laying right under the sun in a vast field somewhere. Except, it’s much more comfortable and less itchy compared from no grass touching her skin and music playing faintly in the background. Her eyes twitch but never open and only enjoying the serenity of the place while taking a deep breath in. The air is old, similar to a hospital kind of from how sterile it also and yet more so to an old library she’d often visit as a child. Fingers slayed out neatly along what she can assume is a cozy blanket over her body, slowly feeling around herself some more to confirm she is in a bed. Finally, Jinsol cracks open her eyes and seeing the blurry antique architecture of some ceiling.

She blinks a few more times, taking in more and more details of the swirling and old fashioned patterns. She takes in another deep breath that smoothly fills her lungs before she’s exhaling through her nose just as easily. Her throat no longer burns and the sick feeling that she had now completely vanished and feeling rejuvenated instead. Jinsol lifts herself onto her elbow with another sigh, somehow feeling winded from the slight movement as she looks around the room carefully. The design and structure of the bed and its surrounding reminds her of a game, Castlevania specifically, she can only guess this place was built in the 1800 or 1900. Still, it raises the question as to why exactly she is here and why the architecture is so… old.

Jinsol sits up properly this time and feeling her joints pop in the process. She looks down at the bed and sees the quilt covering the rest of her body, lifting a hand to move it off until she’s caught off guard by something else. Her sleeping clothes she once had is now replaced with a black flowy, dress shirt buttoned all the way up to her neck and pooling at her wrist as well. It seems she has traveled back in time with this Victorian era outfit, seeing as she pulls down the blanket to see the tight high wasted pants along with boots that matches the whole scenario.

“What the…” Jinsol breathes out in complete confusion and causing some of her hair to fall on her face, her heart leaping again as her eyes widen.

“What the fuck!?”

She whispers her yell at seeing that her hair is now blonde, no longer the straight black color is was and now only cascading down in soft, blonde waves. The only other time she’s had this hair color was in high school and seeing it now makes her wonder who could have done this in her sleep, or maybe semi coma. Jinsol sighs out shakily, trying to get her bearings at the bizarre atmosphere and now taking in the eerie silence filling the establishment. There’s the music she heard before still playing now probably somewhere near her.

“Wait, Mina?” Jinsol calls out quietly, seeing if the woman would magically appear.

However, when nothing happened, she only curses to herself. “Fuck… What do I do now?”

Jinsol takes another careful look around the area to see shelves full of books and a sink in one far corner of room but no mirrors. She checks her side in hopes of finding a clock but saw nothing on the nightstand except for a lamp dimly lit in place. Wearily, Jinsol begins moving off the bed with caution and making sure no noise echoes when her boots land on the ground. The wood doesn’t creak under her as she slowly stands up, feeling much lighter than before while running a hand down her body. There seems to be no injury inflicted upon her, only from feeling, she has yet to check visibly for anything. Jinsol lifts the sleeve of her dress shirt, finding the cut Mina had healed to a scar and reminding her of what happened. She only stares at it for another second before releasing her sleeve and noticing there’s a window above the nightstand.

She looks out of the oval shaped glass, seeing a forest in the distance from the fountain leading into it. Yet, for some reason, Jinsol feels her heartbeat begin to pick up at noticing that there’s seem to be no end to this forest while trailing her eyes up higher and higher. No signs of civilization, no signs of any life and most importantly no signs of Mina. She swallows roughly at the thought, her throat bobbing almost painfully from the action and tearing her gaze away from the window. It almost feels like there’s someone whispering in the back of her head, but she brushes it off when a shiver runs up her spine and the feeling of isolation overpowers it.

_Find her, Jinsol._

It’s the voice again, somehow breaching through her resistance and grabbing her attention.

_Find the truth._

Jinsol can’t help but feel her hands shake at the voice, whispering right next to her ear like a person. It sounds uncanny in nature, a bunch of souls meshed together into one that she couldn’t decipher who or what it is. She flinches into herself at feeling her ear buzz uncomfortably at the ghost of its breath and quickly stumbling away. Luckily for her, she didn’t make much noise and proceeded to edge closer to the only exit out of the room. She wants to spare a glance over her shoulder as she walks closer to the door, but she’s afraid if she does, Jinsol will find someone behind her. Hastily yet carefully, she opens the door with little sound as the cool touch of the metal keeps her grounded.

She’s led into a hallway, poking her head out inch by inch with wide eyes ready for anything. The walls outside are white with a curve to the ceiling, seeing two lamps keeping the place lit despite the sunlight seeping into the floor. There are other doors along the hallway, even one across from her yet she has a feeling she shouldn’t look in there despite the curiosity. Jinsol grips onto the door while peering out some more, seeing the long hallway end into another hallway. Once she thinks the coast is clear Jinsol steps out from the room carefully, keeping her eyes trained towards the other end and now closing the door behind her.

It closes with a quiet click and this time she can clearly hear the music echoing in some part of the building. She begins her walk, passing by the windows and seeing different angles of the same forest she saw earlier. The sky is blue with the sun proudly shining as if nothing is wrong in the world and that she’s somewhere that isn’t her apartment. She feels as if something is watching her, the walls starting to loom over her with every step and the forest becoming bigger than before. She passes a few more doors along the way and doesn’t stop for any of them, especially when she hears someone breathing heavily against it before they’re scratching on the wood. Jinsol picks up the pace easily as the hallways gets darker and they’re less lamps illuminating the area.

She reaches the corner in no time and is careful with her movements, crouching done a bit and peeking over just like she did before. When she doesn’t hear or see anything, she continues her journey to… wherever she has to go, Jinsol is honestly walking blind through this place. Her shirts pools at her wrist once more while slowing down and seeing the new pathway ahead of her. The walls are now a beige color, seeing a couch laying under a painting with two doors visibly open. The one to her right is wide open meaning Jinsol has no choice but to check that one first if she wants to venture further just in case. That’s also the same area where she can hear the music playing now, probably on some vinyl from how old it echoes around her. It’s able to cover her footsteps as Jinsol walks closer on high alert, seeing a fireplace poker nearby if worse comes to worse.

She picks it up without any hesitation while pressing herself closer to the wall, now next to the door and listening attentively for any other sounds. Jinsol is about to inch closer when she doesn’t hear anything, that us until a sultry, feminine voice reaches her ears. She almost drops the fireplace poker in the process as her throat grows dry at the familiar ring and setting her skin ablaze.

_“Well, have you ever thought about it, Chuu?”_

_"Yves… why would I when I have you here? I’m content just staying.”_

_"_ _Even when Head Mistress rules over everything we do?”_

_“It’s to keep everything in order.”_

_…_

_“I think I’ll read for a bit, Chuu.”_

_“But-”_

_“I’ll see you at dinner, okay?”_

_…_

_“Okay… bye, Yves.”_

Then there’s a heavy silence in the air that Jinsol can only assume is this ‘Chuu’ person leaving the vicinity. She feels a sudden panic replacing her shock at the thought that Chuu might be coming her way and Jinsol quickly presses herself behind the door without moving it one bit. It reaches up to the ceiling, successfully hiding her from any danger and luckily for her Chuu doesn’t seem to be coming in her direction. No one else is talking, she releases a sigh of relief, the music comforting her in a way. Her nervousness instantly returns when she realizes that Yves… Yves is _Sooyoung_ , there’s no doubt about it from the smooth lilt of her voice. The last time she spoke with Sooyoung were some months after their breakup before they officially parted ways, and that’s been about some years ago.

Jinsol holds he breath, moving out from behind the door and tightly gripping onto it. She tilts her head some while keeping her body in place and only showing the top of her head. Some strands of her now blonde hair fall out of place as she stretches her neck out and _wow_ Sooyoung has not changed one bit… Her hair is the same long, dark brown color from where she sits at a grand table. There’s shelves upon shelves of books covering all four corners of the room and right across from the table there stands a lit fireplace. From where she is, Jinsol can trace plush, pink lips set into an unreadable expression and eyes gliding across a book she’s reading. The outfit she wears is something Jinsol has never seen before, a soft yellow uniform with brown stripes and a white shirt under.

However, Jinsol makes the mistake of subconsciously taking a step into view and causing the wood to creak under her weight. It’s not loud or anything, but it’s enough to pique Sooyoung’s interest from where she’s sitting as she lifts her head and consequently bringing her gaze up as well. Their eyes meet and Jinsol is frozen in place, seeing the fear wash over her face before it’s replaced with shock along with concern, she’s not really sure how many emotions Sooyoung displayed. Jinsol’s lips part but no words come out as Sooyoung glances to the other side of the room where a door leads into another looping hallway before she’s on her feet. She pushes her chair back as quietly as possible and Jinsol lets herself be led into the warmly lit area, the almost black brown of the walls watching her every move.

“Sooyoung…” Jinsol whispers now standing in the new room. “It’s you…”

“Jinsol,” Sooyoung breathes out while walking closer and taking in her appearance with a sigh. “Oh my- I thought you’d never come.”

“I wanted to I-I was scared and I wasn’t even sure if you wanted to see me again.” Jinsol begins to ramble, just like she always did, and Sooyoung couldn’t help but smile genuinely at the sight.

“There was… a lot for us to fix, but…” She holds her hands out and Jinsol almost can’t believe it as she gently holds them, gazing into those warm eyes.

“At least you’re here, now.”

Jinsol feels the weight being lifted off her shoulders at the statement. Sooyoung tilts her head in the cute teasing way, the same as before, a raising a perfectly plucked brow and biting her lip slightly. She follows the motion and seeing teeth sink into flesh, making Jinsol swallow hard and tighten her grip around her hands at feeling a dull ache surface. It’s been so long that she almost forgot how beautiful Sooyoung always has been, her personality and that smile she first fell over at the very beginning. She now notices more of her outfit as well at seeing her legs shift to see the skirt she’s wearing and exposing soft tan thighs. Her hands itch to grab them already, but Jinsol scolds herself at the thought from being so horny already.

“I… Sooyoung, we need to leave,” Jinsol snaps out of her urges in time now with determination. “You know a way out of here, right?”

“I do.”

“Perfect, then we can-”

“Are you really not going to kiss me first, Jinsol?”

She feels the heat rise to her cheeks and spreading all the way to her ears at the bold question. That’s one thing about Sooyoung, her charisma, her _confidence_ that always leaves Jinsol flustered. Even after so long she hasn’t changed much and Jinsol feels as if they’re the same high school couple from before. Sooyoung lets go off her hands and smoothly brings them up to rest of her shoulders, one of them trailing to her nape. Jinsol shivers from the buzzing sensation and instinctively holds onto her waist, bringing them closer all the while holding her gaze. The air has shifted from the caution she once had to an intense desire straight to her core.

Jinsol rakes her eyes over Sooyoung’s lips again as her mind goes hazy with arousal. The sudden urges took her by surprise, completely unwarranted and unexpected, she isn’t one to complain though especially when Sooyoung has given her permission. She looks back up to see pupils dilated and almost covering the remaining brown, but… something is off about them. She could have sworn she seen them glow a murderous red, dark enough to blend in and for Jinsol to not notice. Except, she does, and it throws her off as her brows twitch together and smile dropping some.

Come to think of it… Sooyoung does _not_ blatantly ask for a kiss like this.

“Wait, wait, wait.” Jinsol pulls away just as Sooyoung slips her hand behind her neck. “H-How did you get here?”

“Jinsol, I haven’t seen you in so long, baby.”

_Baby?_

No, something is completely wrong now… this isn’t the Sooyoung she knows, the one she fell in love with. Sooyoung is careful with her words, she knows everything she needs to say that’s how calculated her personality is. She would have done more teasing at seeing Jinsol, murmur some more words that’ll get her riled up and send her another challenging look. This Sooyoung easily gave herself away and even leaned in first to kiss when Jinsol’s the one that has _always_ been the one to initiate it. Jinsol takes a closer look at Sooyoung, carefully eyeing her and seeing her lips still plastered with that smile.

It doesn’t exactly reach to her eyes.

“Um…” Jinsol feels wary now, letting go of Sooyoung and starting to pull away. “I think we should safely get out of here first.”

“Are you really going to leave me hanging, Jinsol?” There’s too much repetition of her name that it leaves Jinsol herself reeling from the mentions.

“It’s better if we leave first and then we have all the time after.”

“But I want you _now_.”

Her heart stops at the growl hidden behind her voice and the way it echoes loudly around her. Jinsol flinches at the sound and before Sooyoung could yank her back, she ducks under her hands and is able to jump back in time. She trips over her feet a bit, but she’s finds her balance within seconds and maintains a safe distance between them. Jinsol is breathing hard from having used a sudden burst of energy, wavy hair coming into her vision some while staring across at Sooyoung. The skin of her shoulder burns under her shirt because of Sooyoung trying to get a hold of her before she pulled away. Jinsol’s eyes are wide and alert, her body tense as uneasiness settles in the pit of her stomach and releasing an unsteady sigh.

“What are you doing, Sooyoung?” Jinsol asks hastily, watching her intently and seeing a smile spread across her face.

“Why are you acting like this?”

“My sweet, sweet Jinsol…”

She stills at the mention of her name as Sooyoung begins to laugh. It starts out as a small, husky chuckle that soon becomes louder and manic that Jinsol has to cover her ears from the sound. It’s disturbing while sending a chill down her spine, hearing how much more distorted it gets when Sooyoung throws her head back at an unnatural angle. Her eyes widen with fresh tears forming and hands clamping down harder around her ears, but her attempts are futile to muffle the noise. The music that was once playing peacefully has grown in volume along with Sooyoung’s voice, a demonic echo reverberating off the old fashioned walls and practically taunting at Jinsol. She steps back from the now high pitched laughter piercing through her ears and causing her to fall back onto the floor with a pained cry. She holds herself back with one hand planted on the floor with the other still covering her eyes and staring across at Sooyoung and forgot her need to breathe.

There, Sooyoung, twisted her head back up. Her eyes made her sick from seeing the brown replaced with a crazed red glow and the other parts a chilling pitch black. The corners of her mouth had reached to an uncanny length to her ears, the skin ripping apart sickly as her mouth widened with even more laughter. Jinsol feels sick at the sight, gagging to herself briefly as Sooyoung’s hands began to shake and the sound of bones breaking bouncing off around her. Then, out of nowhere, everything came to a standstill. There’s no more of her maniacal laughter, the music that was playing on the vinyl had abruptly stopped with an eerie record scratch and the only other thing Jinsol can hear is her own rapid heartbeat and heavy breathing. That is… until Sooyoung’s beady eyes sharply looked down at her without moving a muscle in her body.

“Still so easy to fool…”

_Run, Jinsol!_

She can see the saliva dripping down from her teeth, a snake like tongue unfurling from her mouth and hanging out like some dog. The skin where it had ripped openly across Sooyoung’s face is now exposing rows upon rows of deadly, sharp teeth as blood slid down her once beautiful face. Jinsol openly gags at the sight, quite literally feeling her stomach hurl from the ungodly sight as a putrid stench reaches her nostrils. She’s stuck in place, but she knows the voice in the back of her head is _screaming_ at her to get back and get the hell out of there. Jinsol pushes herself back quickly when Sooyoung, what she was anyways, took a slow calculated step towards her. Her voice is much deeper, much scratchier and that echo still present in her tone as she clicks her teeth almost humanly.

_Get up, Jinsol! Get out of there. Now!_

Jinsol somehow finds the strength back in her weak legs and clambers up to her feet hastily, especially when Sooyoung lets half of her head fall back and shows off more of her teeth and tongue swinging out wildly.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Jinsol breathes out harshly with a tremble and turning around swiftly. “Oh my god, jesus-”

Sooyoung shrills after her and Jinsol could have sworn she felt her legs turn back into jelly again when she hears footsteps frantically trying to close the distance. Yet, Jinsol is quicker than her and is able to run out of the door in time before Sooyoung can get any closer. Her first instinct told her to run to the same room she woke up in but knowing now it’ll most likely greet her with a dead end Jinsol decides turning to the other door near her. It’s the one she saw when she first snuck up to the main entrance, having check the room with Sooyoung in it first before moving on. The hairs on the back of her neck raise at hearing Sooyoung breathing loudly with a deep, disturbing giggle that once made Jinsol’s heart flutter instead of panic.

_“Don’t run away so soon, Jindori~”_

The distorted sound of her nickname only made matters worse as Jinsol swallows down a gulp of air and takes off down the hallway, boots landing heavily against the wooden floor. She can hear more of her body being cracked and snapped, almost clicking continuously with Jinsol can only assume is a transformation. She doesn’t dwell on it for long when she nears the end of the hallway and almost skids across the ground, turning the corner sharply by holding onto the wall and using the momentum to send herself down another hallway. Sooyoung crashes messily and loudly behind her but Jinsol doesn’t look, her lungs already burning from the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

There’s a change of scenery as the ominous brown of the walls soon turn into a sunny yellow color. Sooyoung’s footsteps have grown harder and she could have sworn she heard the floor creak under her weight. The terror only intensifies as Jinsol feels the sweat already coating her skin and sliding down the back of her neck and causing her dress shirt to cling onto her frame. She enters another room seeing the doors are wide open and decides to stall some time, quickly turning around and sending blonde hair flying around her shoulders. She grabs both ends in one succession, the fear almost maker her weak when she hears Sooyoung getting closer and closer to her location. With a loud yet muffled cry, Jinsol slams the large, looming doors shut right on time as Sooyoung bangs against it.

A large sickly grey hand slips through the opening, nails having grown scarily long and reaching out to her. Jinsol cries out again, the pain evident in the way it comes out strangled with the effort of trying to close the door. Her hand continues to twitch around wildly trying to get a grab at her but from the pressure slowly being applied on her wrist, Sooyoung lets out a blood curling screech and only twitching harder. Jinsol tries in one last ditch effort to lean more of her weight against the door with gritted teeth, sweat trickling down to her chin and hearing the sickening sound bones breaking again. Before she can even catch herself, Sooyoung retracts her hand immediately with another high pitched screech and the doors finally slamming shut.

Jinsol doesn’t hesitate a second longer as she drops to her knees with a pleasant click of the lock, falling back onto her elbows with a hiss.

“COME ON JINSOL. OPEN THE DOOR FOR YOUR SWEET SOOYOUNGIE~.”

“Holy shit!” Jinsol scoots back instantly from the door at suddenly hearing Sooyoung banging on the door continuously while giggling madly.

“OPEN THE DOOR. OPEN THE DOOR. OPEN THE DOOR!!”

She climbs up to her feet, albeit much slower than before as she takes some steps back. Her hand is clutching onto her stomach, the sound of Sooyoung still laughing and banging against the door becoming fainter until she only hears her own breathing. Jinsol bends over her knees some for a second, the exhaustion now catching up to her and feeling the intense burn in her legs. However, she stands back up straight at feeling the pain again and whines quietly while removing her hand, noticing how much she is shaking now. Her throat goes dry at seeing the fresh blood covering some of her trembling hand, finally swallowing when she looks down to see the once pristine black dress shirt now ripped open slightly. She pulls it back with her other hand to see that Sooyoung did get her, the bright red claw marks evident from her rib to her stomach. It’s still bleeding, and she knows it’s seeping into the pants she’s wearing, looking away quickly before she becomes sick again.

A sigh leaves her as she’s brought back to reality and hearing Sooyoung still trying to find her way in. Jinsol observes the new room carefully, trying to think of her next moves before it’s too late. The area has a wide space with painting littered about the cream colored walls and a large chandelier hanging up above her proudly. She moves backwards away from under it at the idea of it falling, seeing the there’s another door to her left and another behind her. The windows easily keep the place illuminated warmly as rays of sunlight touches her skin and somehow soothes Jinsol’s panic. She needs to find a way downstairs if she wants to make it out alive and hopefully find some help.

Just as Jinsol takes another look around the room, she hears wood breaking.

Her blood goes cold, eyes widening again and standing straight back up as she turns around slowly. There, down the way she came from she sees the door bending, straining under the weight of whatever is being applied there before a rapid, demonic giggle easily fills the room. Jinsol takes a step towards the door to her left, that one being the closest to her before bringing a hand up to shield her face with a yelp. The doors finally break open with a deafening crack and falling onto the floor carelessly, some of the wood flying around. Jinsol feels her heart leap to her throat at the next sight.

Sooyoung… what is _left_ of Sooyoung stands there, arms extremely thin to the bone and unnaturally long compared to the rest of her body. The uniforms is still somehow in tack but there’s blood staining the blazer and skirt and as she trails her eyes up higher Jinsol wishes she can look away. Her head is tilted to the side with the bone protruding out in place, raven hair thinning down to almost nothing on her scalp and worst of all, her face. The red eyes stare dead at her, unblinking, twitching over her body as half of her face is now just teeth and tongue. She brings a hand up, the one that’s injured and Jinsol sees how it’s broken open from biting at the pain and the flesh staring back at her as well as blood pours onto the floor. It’s dark, murky and she swears it’s brown now from how it pools around her feet and Jinsol has never felt fear like this in her entire life.

She has to keep running.

“WHY ARE YOU RUNNING AWAY FROM ME JINSOL,” Sooyoung’s voice having dipped down to a chilling octave as Jinsol half limps, half runs out of the room without another glance.

“DON’T LEAVE ME AGAIN JINSOL. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASEPLEASEPLEASE-”

She continues blabbering on while Jinsol takes off again with another heavy exhale. She can feel the floor shake from Sooyoung banging her hands onto the ground as she lets out another banshee like screech. Jinsol herself screams from the sound, the bass of her voice sending nauseating vibrations through her body and into her chest. The tell tales signs of Sooyoung following her reaches her ears again and Jinsol has to push herself despite the pain she’s feeling. She’s soon greeted with another end of a hallway that splits in two directions, Jinsol turning another left knowing that the right might lead her back to the same place. Sooyoung is slamming her hands against the walls and windows, the sound of glass breaking and clattering onto the floor mixing with her cries of laughter and agony.

It seems like there’s no end to this forest when Jinsol sees endless amounts of trees outside every time she glances at a window. She yelps at hearing Sooyoung crash heavily against the hallway and breaking even more glass and this time Jinsol has to ignore the open wounds on her stomach. With a clench of her jaw, Jinsol pushes herself to run faster while letting go of her shirt and continuing to pass through another few rooms. With every new area she enters, another wave of commotion clatters behind her and screeches coming closer. _Shit_ , she is running out of time while slamming the doors of another room similar to the one before. But her legs almost give out under her from a realization.

The room is a dead end.

There’s no other doors, more paintings along the wall with a piano sitting cozily in one corner. Some chairs are scattered about and as Jinsol turns to her side she sees windows leading out to a balcony. She squints, silently cursing her bad vision, before a glimmer of hope falls upon her at another sight. She could seem a fountain peeking up above and a trail that leads out into the forest, a path that would be best considered for cars and her only escape. Jinsol whips back around at hearing Sooyoung trying to break through the door again and knows she doesn’t have any other option. Hastily, she grabs a chair nearby and without a second thought breaks one of the windows with it. Glass flies everywhere, feeling some even scratch her hands and face as Jinsol hisses from the new cuts forming on her skin.

“Why are you leaving so soon… Jinsol…”

Sooyoung sing songs the words sweetly, even with how slow and demonic she sounds. It echoes around the room perfectly and Jinsol has to will herself to not look behind her, so she doesn’t see Sooyoung pushing herself further through the broken doors. She throws the chair carelessly to the side, Sooyoung giggling behind her as always while trying to climb out the window. The pain that shoots through her stomach is almost unbearable, feeling more blood spill out and Jinsol trying to keep herself from crying out. Once her feet plants down on the spacious balcony floors, she feels the need to collapse on the floor already from the fresh air entering her system. Except, once she hears Sooyoung close to her, _too_ close, Jinsol leaps back in time before whipping around and really wishing she didn’t.

Her face has grown now to an amalgamation of teeth, flesh and blood all over her clothes. Sooyoung’s face is no longer than and Jinsol quite literally gags from tasting the bile on the back of her tongue. She keeps walking backwards until her lower back hits the balcony railing, seeing from her peripheral that there is no safe way down. Her eyes turn back onto Sooyoung… seeing a long arm squeezing through the window she just broke, subconsciously pushing herself closer onto the railing. Compared to before, Sooyoung takes her time trying to get through the window and finally reach Jinsol who dreads for the inevitable.

“Don’t… Don’t leave me… Jinsol…” She wheezes out her words as if there’s no oxygen in her lungs, slow and uncharacteristically heartbroken. “We had… so many memories…”

“N-No…” Jinsol says firmly despite the tremble in her voice, grip tightening around the railing. “You’re not Sooyoung… you’re something else.”

“How could you… say that… Jinsol?...”

Her movements come to a standstill and it’s almost jarring the way she freezes entirely like a switch being turned off. For a second… Jinsol feels sympathetic towards her, that probably Sooyoung never asked for this and the pain she must be feeling has to be worse than her own. Still, she remains on defense and watches her carefully as Sooyoung licks her teeth, grimacing at the sight and standing more on her feet.

“I’m sorry… Sooyoung,” Jinsol sighs out quietly, the tears finally falling down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Sooyoung.”

A pause.

“YOU’RE NOT.”

Jinsol jumps at the deafening, piercing wail ruining the silence.

“LIAR LIAR LIAR LIAR LIAR!-”

The moment has turned to the chase from before, Sooyoung having grown even madder somehow with the way she thrashed about and clawed at the floor and pulling herself out of the window. Jinsol could almost feel her heart stop from the surreal events that take place after, she doesn’t want to die in her hands and much less experience being ripped apart or even worse tortured by her. She takes a sharp inhale of air and everything afterwards moves in slow motion.

Sooyoung reaching a bloody, broken hand.

Jinsol screaming at the top of her lungs.

The blood on her stomach making her shirt wet.

And finally, the sight of the forest up ahead.

Jinsol lifts a foot onto the railing, finding the balance to raise her other while holding onto the railing one last time. Without another look, she jumps off the railing as Sooyoung screeches bloody murder up above her and she’s plummeting to her death. The only other thing she sees is the gravel covered ground, her hair flying behind her before she closes her eyes.

_I will always save you, Jinsol_

//

Another gasp of air.

Jinsol bolts up while greedily gulping up the hot air around her.

“Jinsol. I’m right here, hey don’t worry,” She almost pushes the voice away when she feels a hand touch her back, still trying steady her rapid breathing.

“Mina- HMPH!”

Jinsol turns the other way at feeling her stomach churn before she’s retching onto the ground next to her. Her hair is being held away as she continues to retch painfully and the wounds burning once again. Mina shushes her comfortingly, a hand caressing her back soothingly and patiently waiting until she’s done. Jinsol throws up the last of the sudden nausea that hits her, shakily wiping her chin with her sleeve and hanging her head low.

“Why weren’t you there, Mina?” Jinsol questions hoarsely while turning her head some. “I could have been killed.”

“There’s a reason why I was not there in person, Jinsol.”

Jinsol sniffles now feeling much better but at the same time her anger only worsened. She sits back up into position as Mina sighs, crouching into her line of sight. Jinsol settles a glare on the angel who seems unfazed by the action before giving her a small explanation.

“It was a test,” Mina begins softly yet firmly. “To see if you would fall for one of the Sins tricks and become her slave.”

“I don’t get it.”

“Jinsol, that wasn’t the real Sooyoung you saw,” She falls silent at those words. “It was the first Sin you have to encounter before continuing.”

“Then who was it?”

“That… I cannot say right now. We have to venture further.”

Jinsol becomes aware of her surroundings now, noticing the dry grass under them and how dead everything seems. She turns her head slowly to see mountains far away in the distance, as of now they’re in some plain with a river nearby and someone in the water. Jinsol feels herself stiffen the sight of a stranger wearing a dark cloak looking in their direction, their face hidden by the hood over their head.

“They won’t harm us, don’t worry.” Mina places a hand on her shoulder and calming her down some.

“What the fuck is all of this, Mina.”

“Like I said at your apartment, Jinsol,” She turns back around to see Mina holding her gaze sternly. “This is part of the voyage you must take to save Sooyoung. The decision you made from the start.”

“That still doesn’t explain-”

“ _Jinsol_.”

For the first time since their first meeting, Mina actually sounds mad from the way she hisses her words threateningly. Jinsol herself flinches from the tone before Mina quickly sends her an apologetic look while squeezing her shoulder.

“I’m sorry, but we don’t have time to waste.”

Mina stands up after that, holding a handout that Jinsol eyes warily. She relents in the end since after all where else could she go, and Mina has been nothing but kind to her even with what just happened. She grabs her hand with a sigh before she’s hefted up to her feet, Mina stepping closer in case she leaned a little off to the side. Once Jinsol has a sense of her bearings, she can see the field they seem to be standing in the middle of the field with the river being the only source of life. If she squints hard enough Jinsol thinks she can see some trees far in the distance, but the thought is gone when Mina speaks up.

“Come on, I’ll explain more through our travel.”

Jinsol only nods her head, letting Mina guide them to the stranger that’s still on their boat. She’s still hesitant about getting closer to the stranger as Mina only smiles to them once they’re standing at the edge.

“Thank you for meeting with us.”

“It’s my job after all,” The hooded figure speaks casually with Mina, they’re voice low and lilting to the ears.

“Hasn’t been the first visit.”

“That it hasn’t.” Mina chuckles at the jester before looking over her shoulder to Jinsol. “It’s safe don’t worry.”

“I don’t see I have much of a choice anyway.”

“This one seems to have some bite, Mina.”

The stranger cackles under its hood and Jinsol feels both annoyance and fright at the sound. She decides on keeping her silence again as Mina climbs in first, turning in her seat and helping her in as well. They end up sitting across from the figure and Jinsol still can’t see its face, scooting closer to Mina in unease who only laughs softly at her precaution. Who could blame her anyways, she just escaped a near death experience while simultaneously dying at the same time and coming back to life. Jinsol isn’t really sure how this has all happened so far, she’s still shaken from seeing Sooyoung in such a state and being chased around that mansion now that she thinks about it.

She hisses quietly when her arms press against her stomach and reminding her of the fresh wounds still there. Her dress shirt is more so clinging onto her body compared to how it kept her comfortably warm at first. The boat moves and Jinsol is able to fight back a yelp, seeing they’re straying away from the dead grass and towards the middle of the river.

“I’m sure you have lots of questions,” Mina gestures to the stranger. “But I think you should familiarize yourself here.”

Jinsol doesn’t exactly knows what Mina means by that and her confusion is answered when they move. A hand covered with navy grey fur catches her attention first, sharp canine like claws flashing at her that Jinsol goes blank at the sight as it lifts up higher to remove their hood. What she wasn’t expecting is to see a beautiful woman underneath the intimidating clothing, glowing blue eyes meeting hers as two animal ears sprouts from the top of her head. She has long black hair parted to the side, a bit wavy like her own and contrasting nicely with her skin. Her outfit is almost identical to hers with the sleeves of her shirt cuffed at her elbows, a few buttons undone and looking very similar to a grim reaper. Yet, most of all Jinsol notices red plump lips smirking at her slightly before she raises a brow and she quickly stops staring with a blush.

“That’s Siyeon. She’s the guardian of this river and usually takes traveler back and forth between destinations.”

“A pleasure to meet you.”

“Same… I guess…” Jinsol keeps her defenses while Mina only shakes her head.

“Don’t let her appearance scare you, she’s a softie once you get to know her.”

“Completely untrue,” Siyeon growls lowly, surprising Jinsol with the sound as she begins to row. “I could eat her alive if I wanted too.”

“U-Um, wait, what.”

“Siyeon has a dark sense of humor.”

“Right…”

“Moving on,” Mina shifts so she’s now facing Jinsol and holding her gaze. “I think we should start from the beginning of why all of this is happening.”

“Yes, please,” Jinsol is quick to nod her head, even hearing Siyeon chuckle next to them. “Tell me.”

“Very well.”

And Mina does, she explains everything and more as she said. When Jinsol was just about to take her life moments before it happened Mina appeared and true to her word, she is Jinsol’s guardian angel. There’s much more behind it like everything else is but Mina has seen everything Jinsol has grown through, from her first kiss to her first relationship to all the times her father has mistreated her. As any guardian angel they would find a way for their human to live a much happier after life, one that wouldn’t be filled with regret and longing that years of existing would change nothing. Mina has somehow asked their God for permission, which she cannot reveal for the time being, finally told Jinsol that Sooyoung is currently dead.

Jinsol can’t help but shakily exhale from the news, tears welling up in her eyes as she tries to blink them away. It’s no use when a choked sob leaves her and Mina is quick to her aid, murmuring soft words and engulfing her in a hug. Even Siyeon who listened the entire time shows her sympathy by shrugging off her long cloak and passing it to Jinsol. She mumbles her thanks that wouldn’t have been heard if it weren’t for Siyeon’s powers. The new stranger only smiles at her before she continues her task of guiding them down this endless river and seeing now that the fur on her hands end at her elbows from the shirt she wears. Jinsol even tugs the hood up to hide some of her face away while gripping onto it slightly and giving Mina a nod.

She continues her story in a softer tone from before, water splashing calmly against the boat in a quiet symphony. She briefly talks about Sooyoung’s current state and where she resides in this Limbo, a plane where some souls are fortunate enough to live a peaceful life or have a second chance at rare times. This could be her chance given the information Mina has told their God and the grand pity she takes on the broken couple. It’s not often where one’s true love can live together again with a new beginning, a new understanding of their purpose and getting accustomed with the fact of reincarnation, but some succeed.

It’s mostly old folk lore and myths that Mina is able to debunk to her despite how vague it still is. The moral of her story, Jinsol must venture through the twelve dimensions of sin and overcome each obstacle in her search for Sooyoung. The test that Mina had spoken about before is indeed and encounter she’s had with a sin and the first one she must conquer now as they glide down the river. She recalls back to her bathroom where Jinsol was almost successful with her suicide and what Mina had done to her. She allowed some of the dark magic from Hell to seep into her vessel that also harmed her and that’s why Jinsol started to throw up blood, because of the dark magic taking effect of her human body it sent her to this new realm… kind of. They’re basically in Hell, yes, how can an Angel be here though? And why isn’t it the way she pictured it would be?

Mina only tells her she’ll answer those questions in due time and Jinsol has no choice but to nod. As for the mansion she woke up in, that is a part of Sooyoung’s part, a place she holds close to her heart and Jinsol doesn’t even know why. She’s never seen that building in her life and never even heard Sooyoung mention it the time they were together. However, Mina reminds her that although she never knew about it, it was still in Sooyoung’s memories and has manifested into a nightmare.

“Each Sin can signify a nightmare,” Mina continues while gesturing a hand into the air. “That was one for her and maybe for you too.”

“But I didn’t even know where we were much less know about that place.”

“Maybe it wasn’t the place… but the _people_ inside of it.”

Of course, she remembers the other doors littered across the hallway she first walked into.

Exactly _twelve_ of them.

“Seems like blondie is finally using her brain.”

Jinsol glares playfully at Siyeon before her gaze softens and tugs the cloak on her more.

“Speaking of blonde,” Jinsol turns back to Mina. “Why am I blonde again? The last time I had this color was in high school.”

“Even I don’t have the answers for everything… I can only assume it’ll serve some significance as we progress deeper.”

“Was that why… Sooyoung also had long hair,” Jinsol tried to put the pieces together as a dry leaves her. “She always said she wanted to try short hair at one point and I’m pretty sure she did.”

“Perhaps. I wouldn’t doubt that fact.”

“It was like I met her for the first time again… in high school.”

“You said even the mansion resembled slightly of it?”

“Yeah, there were so many books and I even heard another student, I guess? Speaking with her basically.”

“Then it was a manifestation of a Nightmare, Jinsol.”

Siyeon slithers herself into the conversation easily, strong arms still rowing about and seeing claws scratch against the wood every now and then. She gives her a questioning look while Mina only hums in realization, the complete opposite of each other. She flashes a wolf like grin and Jinsol can see fangs poking out that brings back her anxiety.

“A Nightmare, or what you humans can call a past traumatic event, is a vital piece of memory that has happened within the human’s past. They can’t seem to let it go, haunting them every waking hour and even in their sleep without them knowing. The Sins use them to their advantage and tries to take the life and in this case, you made it out alive.”

“Only barely…”

“But you still did, and not many can do that,” Siyeon wipes the smile of her face abruptly surprising even Mina. “Take a look at the river.”

She’s hesitant after all she hasn’t even known Siyeon for a day (or maybe it has been? concept of time is weird right now) and listens to her when Mina encourages her with a nudge. She turns her head slowly and just seeing more of the field that’s barely changed, still the same old dead, brown grass and fog that seems to follow their every move. Jinsol brings her eyes downward with a sigh from stalling and finally taking a look. At first, she doesn’t see anything but deep turquoise surrounding them that could be mistaken for black from how dark it is. There’s no sense of life visible and that much Jinsol can tell, just as she’s about to complain there’s a sudden ripple.

Jinsol thinks she’s going insane at this point because she could have _sworn_ she saw something move even though there’s nothing in the water. She snaps her head in another direction, backing away slightly when another wave of movement catches her attention from the side. Then there’s more waves and ripples forming along with bubbles, then the dread finally dawns upon Jinsol. There are people in the water, she can make out grey, wrinkly skin at the surface and before a few hands break through. She screams at the sudden movements and feels horrified at how shriveled up their skin are from the water that it looks like it could just be peeled off. Then the worse happens, the sound of people choking and gurgling on water reaches her ears and Jinsol squeezes her eyes shut.

But the sight of hollowed out eyes and water continuously spilling from their moves and causing bubbles to firm is still fresh. The hands that tried to reach out to her, the roaring sound of people trying to screech endlessly only to be drowned out by the river is enough to break Jinsol.

“Stop! Fucking stop, p-please!”

“Siyeon,” Mina says sternly and sending her a look before placing a hand on Jinsol’s shoulder. “That’s enough.”

“You see, young one?”

Jinsol cracks one eye open, seeing the melancholic like expression on her face. She can gather from this that Siyeon has been here for a very long time and probably has seen more than any sane person should.

“That is what could have happened to you if you didn’t jump off the balcony,” Siyeon spares a glance to the side and everything becomes silent again aside from the ringing in her ears.

“ _You_ would have been in this very river, or worse.”

“Mina…” Jinsol lays a hand on the angel’s knee and gaining their attention. “I don’t feel so good.”

Her stomach is churning with a familiar burn Jinsol knows all too well. Mina only mumbles some more words, but she doesn’t really hear it especially when Siyeon’s words continue to haunt her. Even with the quiet that’s settled over them, Jinsol feels even more nauseous than when she woke up. The doubts began to plague like what if she fails? Not only herself but Sooyoung as well? Then what can she do if she’s suffering for an eternity with no escape? She starts to think that maybe she should have gone with her other option, death, that her suicide should have been successful and learn to live with her regrets.

“Sooyoung knows you can do it, Jinsol.”

She swallows roughly at the mention of her name and keeps her silence while Mina continues.

“I wouldn’t search for you for nothing.”

“That’s the thing Mina, I-I don’t know if I can do it.”

“Then how come you made it through your test?”

“That was only luck,” Jinsol tiredly presses back, shaking her head quickly. “Even then you saved me after.”

“I _brought_ you to this realm Jinsol because you were passed. It was all you.”

“She’s right kid.”

Siyeon sighs her words while letting go of the old wooden paddles. The boat moves on its own accord without her guidance, clasping her animal hands together and holding Jinsol’s gaze now.

“I know it’s all… complicated right now, but with each trial you pass you will understand, and Mina will be there through it all. Information like this can’t be retained all at once, but if your determination proves to be stronger… Then you will be happy in the end.”

She thinks back to all the wonderful memories she’s had with Sooyoung in the past and despite their breakup they still somehow remained to be on good terms. She remembers how they’d always laugh and sneak out while also helping each other on schoolwork, all the way up to graduation. Even when it became rough, Sooyoung would have that soft, charismatic smile she’d always had just for Jinsol. And _god_ , how she always had her hands roaming over tan skin and marking as she pleased because that’s what Sooyoung also liked.

Sooyoung wanted people to know that she was taken.

“Okay…” It’s pathetic that she doesn’t have much to say, but Siyeon understands. “You’re right, I’m doing this for a reason.”

“And what would that be?”

“To be… with Sooyoung and have a second chance not only with her, but with life as well.”

“You’re not alone in this, Jinsol.”

Mina the ever soft speaker soothes her worries instantly, seeing the small smile on her face. “I will be there, through everything.”

“Well… now what? Where do we go from here?”

“Look up ahead,” Siyeon juts her chin in her direction. “You have your answer right there.”

Both Mina and Jinsol look behind themselves seeing that they’ve arrived at their destination. Whatever she had been expecting was not this as the fog cleared up and their boat slowed down. There off in the distance yet close enough that she could make out lights painting the night sky is a city standing haphazardly in the middle this field they’re still in. There seems to be tree surrounding behind the place with walls covering a good portion of the city, it’s big enough that Jinsol can consider it almost like its own country. Perhaps that’s an exaggeration on her part, but she’s never seen something like this ever before even on Earth. Her shock must be evident from the cackle Siyeon releases, now coming to a stop right next to the grass before turning back around and seeing her wolf grin spread.

“Welcome to the city of Veritas.”

**Author's Note:**

> twitter @jiu_soulieee


End file.
